Shoe-exhibiting apparatus.



l. CAVANAGH.

SHOE ExHlBmNG APPARATUS.

APPLUQATION FILED DEC. B. i915.

Patented Oct. 29, 1918.

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TED STATES PATENT @Fhllm J' AMES CAVANAGH, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS,ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A COR-PORATION 0F NEW JERSEY.

snon-nxmnrrme APPARATUS.

Speccation of Letters Patent.

Patenten oet.. ea, isis.

To all 'whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, JAMES CAVANGH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Boston, in the county of Suolk and State of Massachusetts,have invented certain Improvements in Shoe-Exhibiting Apparatus, ofwhich the following description, in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, is a specification, likereference characters on the drawingsindicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to apparatus for exhibiting and demonstrating theY, desirable qualities of boots andshoes and as herein shown is adaptedparticularly for displaying the exibility of the forepart of a shoe, forexample a welt shoe. Y

An object of the invention'is. to provide an apparatus which willpresent a shoe to an observer in the manner .in which itwould beexhibited by a salesman to a prospective customer or in the manner inwhich it would be examined by the customer himself, that is, by holdingit at its two ends and bending vitat the ball by movements ofthe-hands.

A feature ofthe invention consists in means for supporting a shoe ateach end, and means for moving the supports to `flex the shoe. Asherein. shown the two supports are moved simultaneously about a centerwhich lies between the two ends of the shoe and in the plane of the shoebottom.v This center may conveniently lie at or adjacent to the ball ofthe shoe, and one of the supports, for example that-for the toe, maycontact with and support the -shoe at or near the point about which itis flexed. A further feature of the invention consists in means formoving one portion of the shoe, for example the toe portion, a greaterdistance than the other portion is moved;

These and other features of the invention will be best understood andappreciated from the following description of a `preferred embodimentthereofselected for purposes of illustration and shown in theaccompanying drawing which represents the apparatus in front elevation,partly in section. In the drawing, 2 represents the drive pulley of anelectric or other motor which is belted to aV pulley 4.` On the shaft ofthe pulley 4 is a pinion 6 meshing with a large gear wheel 8 whichcarries in turn a pinion 10 meshing with a gear wheel 12. The gear 12 isprovided with a cam path 14 in which lies a cam roll16 mounted on alever 18 havinga fixed pivot at 20 and provided at one end with a gearsegment 22. The segment 22 meshes with a corresponding segment 24 formedon a carrier 26 which is mounted to slide on a fixed segmental guide 28the center 'of curvature of which is located at approximately the pointin the figure. The movements of the lever 18 by the cam path 14therefore cause the carrier 26 to slide on the guide 28. Upon thecarrier 26 a shoe support 30 is mounted for adjustment longitudinally ofthe shoe by means of a screw and slot at 27, and the support ispreferably formed to resemble a human hand, the thumb of the handcontacting with the shoe at the center of curvature :c of the segmentalguide 28, this center being at the surface of the ball of the outsole.The fingers of the hand engage the toe end of the sole and support theforepart of the shoe.

The lever 18 has a. projection 32 beyond its pivot 2O to which ispivoted a link 34. The opposite end of the link 34 is pivoted at 39 toanarm 36. having a fixed pivot at 38 and having at the end opposite thefixed pivot 38 a toothed segment 40 corresponding to the segment 22 andhaving similar toothed engagement with a segment 42 on a carrier` 44similar to the carrier 26 and mounted on an extension of the curvedguide 28. Another support or hand 46 is mounted adjustably at 29 on thecarrier 44 in the same manner as the hand 30 and is preferably arrangedto engage the rear part of the shoe with the fingers and the lower edgeof the heel breast with the thumb. 'The thumb is preferably pivoted at48 and is pro vided Vwith an lextension below the pivot which is actedupon by a spring 50 to move the thumb toward the lingers and hold therear portion of the shoe between them.

The portion of the support 46 which is adjustably connected to thecarrier 44 at 29 has, as shown, a different shape frornthe correspondingportion of the support 30. The support 46 for the rear end of the shoeextends rearwardly longitudinally of the shoe from the point 29 and thenupwardly towardy the shoe. This construction is to provide for thegreater length of the shoe from the point a' rearwardly than from thispoint forwardly. The adjustments at 27 and 29 enable the supports 30,L16 to be spaced to admit various sizes of shoes and provide forlocating the llexing point of the shoe in accordance with the center a?of the guide 28.

It will be observed that the link 3&1 is connected to the levers 18, 36at unequal distances from the pivots` 20, 38 respectively of the levers,the distance from 2O to the pivot 21 of the link being less than thedistance from 3S to the corresponding pivot 39 of the link. By thisconstruction a given angular movement ot the lever 18 will produce aless angular movement of the lever 36 and hence, of course, acorrespondingly less movement oi' the carrier 14: and the hand .llathanis` communicated by the lever 18 to the hand 80. A greater movementabout the point m is therefore given the forepart of the shoe than isgiven the rear part.

I/Vhen the machine is set in operation with al shoe grasped inthesupporting means, or

.hands as shown, the carriers 2 6, 44, are

moved apart along the guide28 and cause the supports or hands to rockabout the c enter fc and to lexthe shoe sole about a line extendingtransversely of the ball portion, thereby simulating the movements oit'the hands in testing a shoe to ascertain its flexibility. In the ligure,the shoe is shown as it would appear to a customer holding the shoe inhis own hands. A view from the side opposite to that shown iny thefigure would, of course, show the shoe as it would be seen by thecustomer when the shoe is held in the hands of a salesman.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim as vnew and desire tosecure by United States Letters Patentis:

1. In a shoe exhibiting device, the combination of supports for theopposite end portions of the shoe, and means for movingboth the supportsabout a point lying between them.

2. In a shoe exhibiting device, the combination ot ay support engagingthe rear-face of the shoe at the counter and onthe edge of theheelbreast, a second support engaging the toe portion and the ball ofthe shoe, and means :tor moving bothl supportsy about the point ofcontact of the said second support .with` the b all.

3. In a shoe exhibiting device, the combination of two supports adaptedto sustain opposite end portions ofthe shoe, and means for moving thesupports simultaneously to flex the, shoe` il. A shoe exhibiting devicecomprising means for holding the rear part of the shoe, means forholding the forepart of the shoe, and means for moving said holdingmeans rlatively and simultaneously to` bend the s oe.

5. In a machine of the class described, means for holding the rear partof a shoe, means for holding the forepart of the shoe, and means formoving both parts at the same time to flex the shoe, said means beingconstructed and arranged to move one part farther than the other part.

6. In a machine of the class described, means for holding the rear partof a shoe, means for holding the forepart of the shoe, and means formoving both parts to flex the shoe, said means being constructed andarranged.4 to move the `forepart 'farther than the rear part. n

7. In ay machine of the class described, meansfor holding the rear partof a shoe, means for holding the torepart of the shoe, ,and means formoving both holding means at the same time in curved paths, theforepart, holdingl means being moved farther than the rear part holdingmeans.

S. In a shoe exhibiting device, the combi ,nation of a segmental guide,slides mounted on the guide, shoe supporting means -Vixed to the slides,and means for moving the slides toward and from each other to Hex theshoe. v

9. In a shoe exhibiting device, ther combination of a segmental guide,slides mounted on the guide, shoe supporting meansadjustably iixed tothe slides, and means for moving the slides simultaneously toward andfrom each other to flex the shoe.

l0. In a shoe exhibiting device, the combination of a segmental guide,supports mounted to slide on the guide and con structed and arranged tohold the shoe with the ball portion substantially at the center ofcurvature of the guide, levers mounted on fixed pivots, means foroperating the levers, and operative connections between the levers andthe supports to movethe supports on the guide.

11. In a shoe exhibiting device, the com `bination of a segmental guide,supports mounted to slide on the guidev and constructed and arranged tohold the shoe with the ball portion substantially at the center oicurvature of the guide, levers mounted on iixed pivots, a linkconnecting the levers,

,means for moving one of the levers, and

operative connections between the levers and the supports to move thesupports o n the guide.

1 2. In a shoe exhibiting device, the combination of' a segmental guide,supports mounted to slideon the guide and having segmental racksthereon, levers mounted on fixed pivotsl and carrying segmental racksmeshing with the first mentioned racks, a

link conected to said levers at dili'erent distances from the pivots,and means for movmg one of the levers on its pivot.

13. In a machine of the Aclass described, means for holding the rea-rpart of a shoe,

means for holding the forepart of a shoe, and means for moving both saidholding means in diierent directions in a vertical plane to flex theshoe.

14. In a machine of the class described, means for holding the rear partof a shoe,m means for holding the forepart of a shoe, curved guides uponwhich said means are mounted for sliding movement, and means for movingboth said holding means at the same time.

15. In a machine of the class described, a guide, supports mounted toslide on said guide, one of said supports carrying a holdei1 for therear part of a shoe and the 15 other of said supports carrying a holderfor the forepart of a shoe, and means for moving the supports indifferent directions in a verticalplane to Hex the shoe.

In testimony Whereoi1 I have signed my 20 name to this specification.

JAMES CAVANAGH.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, byaddressng theCommissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. C.

